(Wines&Vines) - Northwest vineyards are bringing in the grapes, but an equally important harvest is helping power the crush at many of the region’s wineries.

Solar and wind energy are regularly harvested across the region, the fruit of a push during the past decade to reduce emissions of the gases associated with climate change and boost the generation of alternative power.

Various government policies and incentives encouraged wineries to commission energy audits with a view to reducing overall consumption, and to embrace various forms of on-site generating systems to make the energy they were using greener and cleaner. The USDA’s Rural Energy for America Program (REAP) offered grants for Renewable Energy Systems in Oregon, while former Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski challenged the state’s wine industry in 2007 to go carbon neutral.

Back to the grid
Depending on the system wineries opted for, and the level of funding received to install the systems, the payback has been mixed. Among the initial attractions of the systems was the potential to not only generate enough power to save on energy costs, but to even garner a small stream of additional revenue by returning power to the grid.

While most wineries that invested in solar and wind solutions are happily saving on energy costs, they are not yet seeing extra revenue from the systems.